Michelin unveils 2026 Grape Selection, 9 three‑grape winners

The MICHELIN Guide on July 7 unveiled its first-ever 2026 Grape Selection in Burgundy, creating a new wine ranking system that extends the brand beyond restaurants and hotels. Michelin said 94 wine estates were recognized in the inaugural selection, with nine receiving the top Three MICHELIN Grapes distinction. The ceremony was held at the Palace of the Dukes of Burgundy in Dijon, according to Michelin. The launch follows Michelin’s December 2025 announcement that it would begin awarding wine producers in Burgundy and the Bordeaux region. ### What exactly did Michelin announce in Burgundy? Michelin said the new award uses One, Two and Three Grapes, plus a “Selected” category, to rate wine estates and producers. In Burgundy, the first edition recognized 9 estates with Three Grapes, 20 with Two Grapes, 33 with One Grape and 32 as Selected. Michelin said the Burgundy rollout covers the Côte de Nuits, Côte de Beaune and Côte Chalonnaise. (michelin.com) The MICHELIN Guide said the Grape distinction is meant to become a benchmark for wine lovers in the same way Stars and Keys operate in restaurants and hotels. Michelin launched Stars in 1926 and Keys for hotels in 2024, and said the Grape becomes the latest addition to its honors. ### Which estates received the top Three MICHELIN Grapes? (michelin.com) The Drinks Business reported that the nine Three-Grape winners were Domaine de la Romanée-Conti, Domaine Leroy, Domaine d’Auvenay, Cécile Tremblay, Dugat-Py, Roumier, Coche-Dury, Jean-Marc & Thomas Bouley and Hubert Lamy. Five of those estates are in the Côte de Nuits and four are in the Côte de Beaune, the publication said. (guide.michelin.com) Lalou Bize-Leroy was the only producer with two separate estates at the top level, with Domaine Leroy in Vosne-Romanée and Domaine d’Auvenay in Saint-Romain, according to The Drinks Business. Michelin said the Three-Grape category identifies producers whose wines can be approached “with complete confidence, regardless of the vintage.” ### How does Michelin say it judged the wineries? (thedrinksbusiness.com) Michelin said inspectors assess producers against five universal criteria: quality of agronomy, technical mastery, personality of the wines, consistency across the range and the estate’s ability to convey its terroir and identity. The guide said the award is intended to recognize not only vineyards but also the people running them. (thedrinksbusiness.com) Gwendal Poullennec, international director of the MICHELIN Guide, said the first selection showed that “excellence is not defined solely by the prestige of a name.” Michelin said the Burgundy list includes both long-established family estates and newer producers. ### Why did Michelin start with Burgundy? Michelin said Burgundy was chosen as the first region because it is one of the world’s best-known wine territories and because the modern concept of terroir was shaped there. (guide.michelin.com) The guide pointed to Burgundy’s climats, its UNESCO-recognized vineyard landscape, and the region’s association with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. (michelin.com) The guide had already said in December 2025 that Burgundy and the Bordeaux region would be the first two wine territories covered by the new Grapes project. That made the Burgundy launch the opening step in a broader wine expansion Michelin had signaled months earlier. ### What else is Michelin expanding next? (guide.michelin.com) Michelin said in April that it is also expanding its restaurant coverage in the United States through a new MICHELIN Guide American Great Lakes edition. That multi-city guide covers Cleveland, Detroit, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Minneapolis and Pittsburgh, and Michelin said the inaugural restaurant selection will be revealed in 2027. Michelin added that its anonymous inspectors are already in the field. (guide.michelin.com) Bordeaux is the next named wine region in Michelin’s Grapes plan, according to Michelin’s December 2025 announcement. The company has not, in the material reviewed, published a date for that Bordeaux selection, while the American Great Lakes restaurant ceremony is also set for 2027 at a date to be announced later. (guide.michelin.com 1) (guide.michelin.com 2)